The next Shiraz, varietal wines for Australia

Written by Darby Higgs

Continued from page 1

Spain's answer to Sangiovese is Tempranillo. It is growing in popularity in many Australian wine regions. To a large extent jury is still as many of plantings are still quite new. Among champions of variety are James Halliday and Mark Walpole of Brown Brothers. Tempranillo matures a little earlier than Shiraz or Sangiovese so it can be grown in slightly cooler regions, Indeed Manton Creek Vineyard in Mornington Peninsula is one of more highly regarded producers.

The Durif variety is regarded as a warm climate variety, indeed it seemed as though Rutherglen held a monopoly on variety. But in fact is relatively early ripening, as demonstrated by John Vale at Balnarring on Mornington Peninsula. The outstanding feature of Durif is high level of tannins, but if these can be mastered then

There are a few other varieties attracting attention which will figure in mix over next decade or so. Petit verdot is becoming much more popular in warmer areas. It was pioneered in Australia by Pirramirra in McLaren Vale but it is now grown extensively in Murray Darling and Riverina.

Barbera and Nebbiolo are two other Italian varieties which are highly regarded in Australia. Lagrein is a little known Italian variety, in fact it is from North East of Italy. It is an early ripening variety and as such can be grown in cooler climates. Cobaw Ridge in Macedon Ranges region has a wonderful Lagrein.

So what is verdict? Which red winegrape variety will be next Shiraz? It seems to be a contest between Sangiovese and Tempranillo, with both camps having some firm adherents. My money at this stage goes with Sangiovese, it has runs on board.

Darby Higgs is an expert on varietal wines made from less common grape varieties. He is founder and editor of vinodiversity, an information resource. See http://www.vinodiversity.com

Gallstones and Coffee! Who Would Have Thought?

Written by Randy Wilson

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This was also true for pancreatic cancer; a study in 1981 showed a possible association with coffee consumption, but most studies since then have not shown a statistically significant relationship.

The Department of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, also did a statistical analysis of twelve published articles pertaining to relationship between coffee consumption and reduced risk of colorectal cancer. This analysis determined that lower risk of colorectal cancer due to coffees was particularly observed in studies from Asia, Northern and Southern Europe, and North America.

While analysis could not definitively state that there is a relationship due to difference in ways various studies were conducted, results did indicate as previously published that coffee consumption lowered risk of colorectal cancer.

The Department of Nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts, looked at possible relationship between coffees consumption and gallstones.

The researchers particularly examined relationship between cholecystectomy, a surrogate of symptomatic gallstone disease, and coffees consumption in women. Over twenty years, over 80,000 women were studied to watch for various gastrointestinal health issues.

The researchers found that drinking caffeinated coffees reduced risk of symptomatic gallstone disease in women. The same institute also studied this same relationship between coffees consumption and gastrointestinal health issues in men. Over 46,000 men were surveyed.

This study found that increasing intake of caffeinated coffees (four or more cups daily) decreased risk of symptomatic gallstone disease. In total, these studies have shown that there may be some relationship between consumption of caffeinated coffees and reduction of risk of several gastrointestinal health issues.

These studies showed that there is a significant probability of benefit with regards to cirrhosis of liver, colorectal cancer, and gallstones. There was not enough data to conclusively state same about other cancers, including that of bladder and pancreas.